Libertarianism is not so much a political philosophy as it is a sexual fantasy. It is the doctrine of oddly-dressed men with dead-end civil service jobs and no social graces who couldn't get a date with a beautiful woman to save their lives. "If only," they think, eying some statuesque stranger on the subway, "I could reshape our society from top to bottom, so that the only positive value was the acquisition of wealth. Then I could simply offer her money to go out with me — and it'd be immoral for her to turn me down!"-Michael Swanwick